Vignettes Along The Road To Paradise
by Ni'Rala vas Qwib Qwib
Summary: A series of short stories set in the universe to my main story, The Road To Paradise. NaruTali, past NaruHina
1. The Showdown For The Dawn

**Vignettes**

 **The Showdown For The Dawn**

Naruto wished he paid more attention in the academy as he trudged through the bleak marsh. Maybe then trekking through an unknown land by moonlight wouldn't be so impossible.

The Village Hidden in the Waterfall was said to be the most beautiful of all shinobi villages on earth. Its titular waterfall was one of the natural marvels of the world. The rare paintings illegally crafted against village security regulations showed it spanning a monstrous cliff that could hold all nine tailed beasts. A dozen rainbows filled the sky as if the gods have drafted this place as paradise on earth.

But all that water had to go somewhere. And so did the rest of the country earn its name: the Land of Swamps.

Naruto cursed as he felt another coating of slime squish into his sandal. He kept pushing on and finally reached a grassy patch of land that almost shined in his mind. He crawled up the surface and shook himself as dry as he could. No good, frigid water clung to his clothes and skin. What he wouldn't give for a drying jutsu.

The grass grew denser the way he wanted to go, at least he hoped it was. The trees were looming, it was hard to catch the stars. If only he'd been a little faster he'd have reached his destination before sunset. Naruto marched forward and only hoped he was on the right path.

Up ahead he saw a light. A few hundred yards away at best. He froze. This swamp was purposefully in the middle of nowhere, a no man's land. The closest settlement was a small fishing village a dozen kilometers from here, he'd checked at least three times. Bandits? They stayed near the main roads looking for unguarded caravans of refugees. They wouldn't be this far from the main routes. It could be some remnants of the Grass Village in exile…

No. He knew who it was.

Naruto pulled out a kunai and steeled himself. His heart threatened to revolt, it pounded like a snare drum. He pressed forward as proudly as he could. No stealth, he issued this challenge. He would not hide and go for the easy kill.

The cold didn't seem so troublesome now. Something far worse was ahead. The grass gave way as if parting for his entrance. He rounded a tree and then he saw him.

The man was hunched over a flame searing a pair of fish. He wore ancient red armor from a bygone era he'd never truly left behind. He didn't wear the spiraling mask, his hair had grown long since the start of the war and trailed down his back like a spiky waterfall. He grasped a twig with a scarred hand to prod the flame. The manual labor seemed beneath the legendary man.

"You can come out. I know you're there."

Of course he did, the man was so aware he seemed inhuman. Naruto walked out from behind a tree and tried to match what he thought was the other man's guard, "Madara."

The man turned. His sharingan and stolen rinnegan glowed, "Naruto."

Naruto quickly looked away to avoid any genjutsu. He kept his eye on Marada's shadow, ready to respond to the slightest motion.

"No need to fight just yet. We've both had a long journey. Come, we should eat."

A meal? Whatever Madara was playing at, he wasn't buying it, "You think I'll trust you? You could have poisoned it to paralyze me."

Madara was not amused, "You came to meet me on the battlefield as warriors. When I defeat you, it will be in battle as warriors." Madara motioned to the fire. "Dry yourself and eat. We deserve to fight at our best tonight."

Naruto eyed Madara cautiously. The great ancestor turned back to the fire and added another log for the hungry flames. He showed no concern for the enemy behind him with a kunai in his hand.

The red armor stopped just below the neck, he could see the vertebrae protruding ever so slightly. If he was quick he bet he could strike before Madara could react…

No, that was wrong. Madara had agreed to a fair fight. One on one. He wouldn't end this war with a cheap trick.

Naruto strolled past the last Uchiha cautiously and kept him in the corner of his eye. Madara's only response was to prod the flames again. Naruto took his seat adjacent from Madara so the fire wouldn't be between them. They stared into the flames with each other only visible in their peripheral vision.

Madara moved, making Naruto flinch. He grabbed the sticks skewering the trout. He offered them to Naruto. "Pick one, if you still think they're poisoned."

Naruto looked the man over cautiously while avoiding his sharingan. If the man was deceiving him, he hid it well. Then again they said Madara was a master of falsehood and lies.

"Look at me." Madara commanded.

"You know that won't work."

"Look at me." Madara said again.

Naruto narrowed his gaze, "I'm not falling for your illusions."

"I know. That's why I'm asking you to look."

He couldn't understand why Madara was being so insistent. He felt his curiosity outweighing his caution. He quickly glanced up but was prepared to look away in a flash.

Madara stared back, his right eye was black. He looked sad, but Naruto hadn't the faintest why. He held the fish out a bit further.

Naruto was startled to see his sharingan concealed. He felt guilty. Madara met Naruto exactly where he'd agreed, alone and without backup. Most of what Naruto knew of Madara came from the old stories, he'd never spent more than five minutes with the actual man. He didn't know what to expect when he actually met. But it seemed Madara was a man of his word.

Naruto and Madara sat silently while their eyes met. He reached out and accepted the fish. Madara kept his own and together they ate in silence.

Halfway through his fish Naruto felt like he should return the gesture. He reached into his kit and pulled out the last of his rations. A bit of jerky and dried grains. It wasn't much, but it was all he had to offer. He put half into a travel dish and offered it to Madara. "Take it. It's better than it looks."

His enemy first looked to him, then to the dish. He too waited a moment to decide if he should trust Naruto. "I'm a man of my word too." Naruto said.

Madara's expression didn't change. But he accepted the dish. Naruto took his half and picked what was left of his trout and put it in his own bowl. Madara watched him do it before doing the same. They went back to eating, enjoying what would be one of their last meals.

Naruto finished and set his bowl aside and noticed his clothes were drying out. He felt more anxious and wondered if Madara would attack now. He pressed the inside of his arm to his thigh and felt the kunai up his sleeve. He was ready just in case of a surprise attack.

Madara made no motion to attack when he set his dish down and went back to prodding the fire. The wood had turned to charcoal during their meal. Madara grabbed more wood from the pile next to him and threw a few logs on the embers. The flames climbed them and the fire came back to life.

Naruto waited for Madara to finish before he spoke, "What's going on, Madara?"

"I was hungry, I thought you might be too." Madara mused, "I'm surprised you came alone. I expected an ambush."

"So did I. I thought your army would be hiding around somewehere."

"I do not need an army to defeat you."

Naruto huffed, but internally he felt a rush of excitement. Madara was overconfident. Perfect. "So why don't you defeat me already?"

"I wanted to talk." Madara said simply.

If Naruto had still been eating, he might have choked, "Talk? Why the hell would you want to talk to me?"

Madara laughed softly and looked a bit sadder, his right eye reflecting the void,"Maybe I shouldn't. I was always the fighter. The champion. My brother was the talker. He tried to end conflict with words."

"Was that before you stole his eyes?" Naruto asked with a dash of venom.

Madara shook it off, "I never stole them. He gave them to me." Madara's lips twitched in the shadow of a smile, "'Take them, brother. Watch me change the world. I don't need my sight, I have my voice.'" Madara quoted, and then whatever happiness was in him vanished, "And then he died. The Senju slit his throat."

Naruto didn't want to believe it. All stories he'd heard of Madara made him the villain. How he stole his brother's eyes to save his own sight, how he betrayed the First Hokage and tried to destroy the fledgeling leaf Village, and how he'd turned on his own clan when they refused to rally behind him...all that made it easy to paint Madara as the world's enemy.

But there was no faking the tragedy in those eyes.

Naruto bowed his head, "I'm sorry about your brother. I think I would have liked him."

"Izuna found the best in people. Even a depraved soul such as myself." He paused, "I see much of him in you."

It felt so uncomfortable being complimented by a man he knew would try to kill him. Naruto was about to say something, when Madara continued, "I want to honor Izuna's memory. I want to end this peacefully, if we can."

Diplomacy? Was this really something the two of them could talk over? This was a world war, putting all that to bed with an after-dinner talk over a campfire seemed unlikely. There were the minor villages sided with Madara's army and their demands, and the agendas of the Daimyos and the Kages. But all that paled before Madara's Moon's Eye Plan.

But Naruto still wanted to talk as well. Neither he or Madara really believed they'd get the other to bend, he thought. Then again tonight was full of surprises. Maybe...at least he could find out why. "And what's your version of peaceful, Madara?"

"You come with me willingly, I extract the Kyubi, and you die peacefully. The last death on earth. Then I use the powers of the tailed beast to complete my plan and take humanity to paradise."

Naruto scoffed. He wasn't afraid to die, he was prepared for it. But the Moon's Eye Plan was unacceptable to him, no different from slavery. He looked to Madara, "Okay, here's my vision: you come back to camp with me, give up on your plan and we negotiate a ceasefire, one that can lead to peace for everyone. Then we create a paradise here on earth."

Madara chuckled, like a grandfather would at their descendant's excited chatter, "It appears we're at an impasse."

"Why? Isn't that what your brother wanted?" Naruto asked, narrowing his eyes accusingly. "Why are you only speaking with me? The Kages will listen if you come with me. We can start a dialogue! No one else has to die." Naruto said firmly.

"The Kages have nothing to offer me." Madara said. "You are the key, the last key I need to unlocking our prosperity. I say this for you, so you can avoid pain before the end."

"That'll never happen, Madara. I want my friends to live free. Everyone on my side has rejected your version of the future, they want to shape it themselves. And thousands have fallen fighting for it. I'm here so no one else has to die."

"Friends like Sasuke?" Madara said. Naruto froze, trying to look like it hadn't affected him, but he'd already given himself away, "Yes, I know. I never expected an avenger to die defending a friend."

The wound was still fresh in his heart, and Naruto knew Madara could see right through it. He couldn't hide it, so he let it fuel him. "I've had people dying for me this entire war. I've watched the bodies pile up taking attacks meant for me. I can't even remember all their names. I tried!"

Naruto stood and placed his hand over his heart, he was nearly screaming. All the pain and guilt he kept buried inside sprang forth, "I know they didn't do it for me, they did it for the thing inside me! All my life, that's been the thing that defines me! Well no more! Today _I_ fight for _them!_ I fight for their futures, for their right to realize their dreams! I fight so that we don't have to fight anymore...today, I'm ending the cycle of pain!"

The swamp was silent save for the cicadas chirping in the night. Fireflies were circling the rising smoke into the treetops above. Madara held the young man's gaze. He did not flinch at the blonde's ferocity. "You won't succeed."

"What do you mean?" Naruto asked roughly. "We're more united than we've ever been. After this, we finally have a chance at peace."

"It's not that simple." Madara shook his head, his hair shifting like a tail, much like Jiraiya's used to…

"We thought the same when we formed the villages. The battles became less frequent, but more massive than we could have ever imagined. This is the fourth great shinobi war, and it will not be the last. Maybe someday we'll move beyond the endless cycle. But how many will suffer before we reach that point as a species? And what happens if the scale of war increases? Our people grow stronger every generation. Look at what Nagato was capable of. If such destructive potential became the standard, the world would not survive. My way offers peace to all, until the end of time. And all I need is one life. Yours."

"I don't believe that." Naruto said, "This is a future we've dreamed of for generations. The toad sages, Jiraiya, my father, all carried that dream. Now it comes to me! And I'm going to realize that dream!"

Madara smirked, "Even if you have to drag anyone who is unwilling? Tell me, if you have to force people to follow your dream of peace, how are you any different from me?"

"Don't compare me to you," Naruto leered, his heart pounding in his ears, "We're ready for this, people put aside their grudges to fight this war. We're ready to end the cycle."

"The minor villages at my side disagree. Or will you slaughter them all like Grass to achieve your end?" Naruto visibly flinched at the mention of the Grasscutter incident. Madara closed his eyes and sat still for a moment. Then he stood and stared into the fire. The flames were nearly out, but he did not feed it more wood. "But you have passion. And hope." Madara sighed, "We're done talking. We handle this my way now."

Naruto nodded and closed his eyes. He kept his senses alert for Madara's attack while he drew in sage energy. But Madara gave him time, he wanted to defeat Naruto at his best.

The thought made him smile at his enemy who had been completely different from the villain he'd imagined. He had to remember Madara was human too, "You know, if things were different we might have been friends."

"It's pointless to think that way," Madara sighed. "Don't use your tailed beast."

Naruto raised an eyebrow as he began backing away, "What? Why bring that up?"

"Because if you do, I'll use the eight in me to crush you."

Naruto felt his spine freeze with fear, "You have all the other beasts sealed inside you?!" Even the eight tails...*

"Yes, and soon the Fox will join them. With their power, my Infinite Tsukuyomi will last forever." Madara explained, "I do not need them to defeat you. Come. Take the first blow and you will see how pointless your struggle is."

"No," Naruto said without hesitating, "You wanted a fair fight. So do I. No freebies."

Something flashed through the eye Madara could still call his own. Something resembling respect, "So be it."

The world's fate rested on the shoulders of a legend and a dead last.

The fire devoured the last of the carbon in the wood. The flames flickered and died, leaving only embers glowing in the darkness.

It began.

Naruto dashed at the rogue Uchiha. His feet hammered off the ground to match the drumbeat of his heart. He had two advantages: Madara's overconfidence, and that he needed Naruto alive. Naruto was under no such restraint.

Madara raised his hand and looked past the blonde with his stolen almighty eye, "Almighty push!"

An unseen power blasted across the land lifting earth, root and tree into the air along with the blonde. Naruto felt himself blown into the air, flipping twice and just catching himself with his hand and springing to his feet. He reached into his pack and pulled out a mini-fuma shuriken. He flicked it to release the blades and threw it at Madara.

The Uchiha deflected the weapon to the side and reached out again, "Universal pull!"

Naruto gasped as he was pulled forward, flying through the air straight at his opponent. Madara reached for his bladed fan and prepared to strike. Naruto grit his teeth and formed a hand seal before disappearing in a puff of smoke. In an instant he swapped places with the shuriken he'd just thrown, appearing right beside Madara.

Madara cursed and brought up his fan to shield himself from the shuriken. Naruto pushed forward and lunged at the Uchiha. He held his sage chakra at the edge of the palm of his hand, just as Hinata taught him. _'Juken!_ '

His palm touched the back of Madara's armor and pushed his chakra through, but it would not pass through the armor.

Dammit, Naruto thought. No good, this armor held some property that prevented chakra from penetrating it. Hurry, plan B. Go for the eyes! No sharingan means no moon's eye plan!

Naruto quickly leaned away as Madara swung the fan behind him and formed his cross seal. Two shadow clones appeared on either side of Madara and grabbed his arms to pin him. Naruto pulled out the kunai up his sleeve and jabbed it at Madara's eye. It still hadn't been five seconds!

Madara spoke lowly, "Asura path."

Two mechanical arms emerged from Madara's shoulder. One stopped his arm, the other grabbed his throat. Together they dragged him into the air and over Madara, sending him flying across the battlefield.

Naruto landed just as Madara slashed his two clones with his fan to destroy them. Madara turned and his two false arms opened, revealing an array of micro-missiles he'd encountered only once before.

 _'Shit!'_ he thought. Madara held his two arrays high and launched a barrage. Naruto turned and ran, he didn't need to watch to know where they'd land.

The missiles peaked and descended in a downpour, blasting the earth, shattering rocks and filling the air with the echoes of explosions. Naruto avoided most of the impact area, but a few had been aimed outside that perimeter. He looked over his shoulder and saw a few aimed at him, too close to completely avoid.

Naruto turned and flipped through some hand seals and called, "Wind style: Hurricane Palm!"

Naruto thrust his palm at the oncoming missiles. The air in its center began to spin quickly and violently, extending into a tornado that reached above the trees. The missiles were blown off course by the violent winds and crashed across the earth.

What now? Any jutsu he used could be absorbed if he used the Preta Path. He could try getting in close again, but one legend about Madara he was sure was true was his skills in a melee, he couldn't risk confirming them. Not yet. All he had on his side was Madara's hubris…and he planned to use it!

Madara lifted his hand to attack again, but Naruto turned and jumped into the trees and away from their battlefield. "You will not retreat!" Madara hissed and gave chase.

His hands barely touched the branches as he skimmed through them at top speed. He hoped this was the right direction. It should be, but if he got it wrong he had no idea where he'd end up. But if he was right, and he was sure he was, he could set a trap for Madara that could end this fight!

"There you are."

Naruto turned, Madara's face was inches from his own. How could he move so fast?!

Madara swung his fan and hit Naruto with the flat front. The young man toppled through the trees and crashed into the ground. He hit his shoulder hard and he swore he heard something crack.

Madara landed gracefully as the blonde tumbled across the forest floor. "You would run from your own challenge. Disgraceful," he sneered.

Naruto knelt with a hand on his knee. He could hear it. He could hear the river!

"If this is all you are capable of, I'll end this quickly." Madara said and flipped through a few handseals. "I need you alive. How alive does not matter."

Madara finished his seals and raised his hand. A single thin flame emerged from the end, a rope made of fire. "Fire style: demon chain."

Madara cracked his whip of flame, it lashed across the forest floor. Leaves were incinerated at its touch, grass wilted and trees scarred from the intense fire. Naruto lay flat on the ground to avoid the strike. He felt the heat as it flew above him, and smelled a few of his hairs incinerating.

Naruto pushed himself up and dodged to the side as the whip came crashing down. He turned and bolted to the river. So close! He'd see it any second now.

"Shadow clone jutsu!" he called to summon five clones. All he needed was a short distraction. Just long enough to get there!

The five clones attacked. Madara circled the glowing whip over his head. With a flick of the wrist he sent it spiraling into the squad. One clone was hit in the head, which melted before it dispersed. The whip kept going and struck a second clone in the side.

The remaining three pressed on. The two in front grabbed a boulder from the earth and hurled it at Madara with the strength of true sages. Madara flicked his wrist and brought the whip down on it. The fire melted the boulder in two, each part passing harmlessly on his either side.

He released the whip and formed more seals, "Fire style: great firewall!"

He breathed a line of fire into the ground. The flames rose high into the sky, setting the tree canopy alight. The clones stopped their advance and were cut off. But Madara was not done.

He took his fan and fueled it with his chakra. He slashed the broad side of the fan against the flames. His mighty fan amplified the strength of the fire. It screamed and grew ten times its size, exploding outward and enveloping the clones. The trees were incinerated to ash.

Naruto could feel the heat at his back just as he saw the river. He slid down a hill and onto the rocky beachhead just as Madara emerged from the fire. He was unburned.

"Naruto Uzumaki!" He called as he leaped below.

Naruto reached the water. He felt it shifting under his feet as he water walked. His salvation.

He turned to his opponent. "Madara Uchiha."

Madara approached as the hunter cornering its prey. "You're a disgrace to your family name," he spoke in disgust.

"You don't know a thing about my family."

"I know everything about your inbred excuse of a clan. Be thankful they are not here to see the scum that remains." Madara was boiling with rage. "Your end will no longer be painless."

Madara brought his hands together. Their movements were familiar to Naruto, "Fire style: great fireball jutsu!"

Madara's chest puffed with burning chakra before he lunged forward and released it, spitting fire that grew until all Naruto could see was brightness.

Now! Now was his chance!

Naruto formed his own seals and seized it, _'Water style: water formation wall!'_

His secret practice with Kakashi had paid off. The water around him began to swell and rise to protect him from the flames. The fire broke over his shield and filled the plains with steam.

Naruto focused on the source of the fire, trying to follow it to its source. Then aimed just a little above and to the left. _'Water style: water severing spear!'_ A single trail of water rose from the river no wider around than his arm. The end slanted until it was as fine as a needlepoint, and pushed through the wall, puncturing the flame.

Naruto didn't need to see his attack to know it hit. Madara's scream confirmed it.

The fire died, and with it Naruto released his water jutsu. Madara was on his knees holding his face. Over his left eye. Where his rinnegan used to be.

No! He hit the wrong eye!

Madara gave up stemming the flow of blood from his destroyed eye and was livid, "I had no idea you mastered water style. An excellent deception! But now, you will receive no mercy from me!"

Mercy? Since when had mercy been on the table?

He took out his rinnegan, that means Madara also lost access to the six paths. His jutsu could work again! He had to get moving, he knew where to go next. But Madara was too fast, he'd never make it that far in time. He needed another distraction. Time to put those chakra reserves to use! Burn it all!

Naruto formed his cross seal, "Multi-shadow clone jutsu!" he cried. The river was covered in a cloud of smoke. Before the smoke had dispersed fifty Narutos emerged and sprinted off in different directions.

Madara screamed his furor and formed his own cross seal, creating four clones. Far fewer, but he didn't have the reserves of a lifelong jinchuriki. The five split up and dashed after the clones, intent on hacking them to pieces until they found the original.

The real Naruto continued to follow the river. If he followed it, he was sure he would reach where he needed to be. Ten kilometers, that's how far he needed to run. But if he could reach there, he was certain he could win!

Naruto felt his clones being destroyed one by one. The first five were killed quickly, but the killings were spaced out as the clones spread further apart. He kept following the winding river long after his sage mode had ended. Keep moving, he told himself. Don't stop for a second, not even for more sage chakra. He wouldn't need to worry about that once he reached the forest.

The river split apart into a series of distributaries like roots to a tree. The lands between distributaries were covered with small white leafless trees. He made it. And with ten clones to spare.

A powerful strike in his back smashed his spine. Naruto went hurling down the cliff and slammed against a rock. He coughed blood.

Madara was breathing hard. "Enough chasing." He seethed and loomed towards Naruto.

He tasted warm iron. His world was twisting like he'd been spinning in a chair too fast. Naruto shook it off as best he could and crawled to his feet. He was shaking, but still alive. He turned and ran towards the nearest tree. If he could just touch it-

Madara appeared and slapped him sideways. He crashed and rolled along the ground, certain he must have cracked a bone this time.

"How long will you run from me?" Madara seethed.

 _'Just long enough…'_ Naruto gasped and crawled towards the tree. Its root was so close. If he could only touch it…

"You would crawl even now? Coward!" Madara cried and stepped on his spine, pushing him into the dirt.

Naruto ignored him and reached. His arm was straining. Just another inch…

His finger brushed against the bark of the root. In an instant the tree shriveled and died, and Naruto's sage mode returned. He threw Madara off and dived at the man, burying his fist into his armored gut. The blow knocked the air out of Madara's lungs, and Naruto gave him no time to recover.

Of course he had run, to his next plan! These were no ordinary trees. These trees soaked the bountiful waters that streamed from the Village Hidden in the Waterfall. The waters were alive with chakra. These were the trees used to create the paper shinobi used to discover their elemental affinity. They were soaked with energy! All Naruto had to do was touch it and steal its energy, and in a flash sage mode returned!

The tides had turned. Madara was strong, possibly the strongest, but Naruto held nothing back. He did not spare his sage energy like before, every blow was rich with power. When he ran low, he need only touch one of the many trees to recover.

Madara grabbed his fan and coated it in flaming chakra. He swung and attempted to sever the boy's arm. But Naruto caught the blade, his natural energy shielded him from the heat. He pulled it in and bashed his elbow into Madara's arm and heard a crack at the wrist. Naruto took the fan and threw it far, too far to reach, and continued his assault.

Madara couldn't keep up. He could barely breathe. His blows glanced off the boy as if they were insect bites! Naruto hit with the power of a bull. He could feel his armor beginning to rend from the unrelenting force.

Naruto unloaded a flurry of punches on Madara's chest, pushing Madara into one of the trees. Naruto leaped on him and grabbed the tree on either side, soaking in the energy before slamming his head into Madara's. His headbutt crushed Madara through the shriveled remains.

Madara slid to a halt a few meters away. He writhed as Naruto pressed forward. He wouldn't give him any rest.

But Madara had had enough. "No more!" He cried. His eye flared and began to spin, a mass of chakra working through the eternal eye. "Susanoo!"

Naruto was blasted back by the explosion of chakra. Waves of thick blue energy radiated through the air, scorching the trees and charring the land black with death. The chakra began collecting around the source of the blast, gathering at the base before climbing onto itself like the flames of the campfire. The chakra began to take the form of a giant shrouded in cloaked armor with two expressionless red eyes.

To form a Susanoo of this size with a single sharingan was a testament to Madara's legend.

The giant towered over the forest. Madara rested at its heart, clearly visible through the glowing mass of power. His visible sharingan eye was bleeding to match his destroyed rinnegan. "Naruto, I'm ending this battle!"

Naruto stood against the radiating chakra. The clothing rippled in the wind, the tails of his headband snapping behind him.

This was it, Madara's strongest technique. If he could break it, the battle would be over!

"Bring it on, Madara!" Naruto roared.

The giant chakra construct reached into itself and unsheathed a giant long sword. It reached high to the stars before it came crashing down like a meteor from the sky. Naruto created a clone to throw him out of the way. The sword smashed through the earth, sending earth and trees flying.

Naruto created another clone while the construct recovered. He worked with the clone to manipulate the shape and nature of his chakra into his most destructive jutsu. "Rasenshuriken!" He called and threw the howling disc at his foe. Madara raised susanoo's shield to absorb the blow. His attack smashed into susanoo and burst into a whirling sphere of wind shearing apart its armor. Naruto turned away and ran to the next tree to absorb its energy.

Madara sneered as he felt Naruto's jutsu reaving his construct's armor. "I've had enough of your pathetic resistance!" Madara turned to the forest of trees. Without it, Naruto would be powerless! "Amaterasu!"

Black fire erupted across the forest. White trees turned to ash in seconds from the unholy flames and spread with unnatural speed. Naruto threw another rasenshuriken at the construct and ran deeper into the forest. He weaved between the flames and found a tree still standing. Madara and his Susanoo followed, slashing the earth and nipping at Naruto's heels.

The wetlands were consumed with destruction. Black smoke blotted the sky and covered the stars as the land turned to ash. One of Naruto's attacks missed and flew off into the forest, blasting into the side of a mountain in the distance. But otherwise Naruto's aim was true. Rasenshurikens clashed with the construct in a challenge to its might.

Susanoo reaved the land with its blade. Naruto leaped off a tree to dodge, but Madara shifted the direction of the strike into the earth. A blast of dirt and stone rushed to the air and crashed into Naruto, sending him hurling through the forest. Naruto slid through the dirt, the pain was intense. But he picked himself up. His attacks were chipping through Madara's defense, he could see his heavy breathing. Just keep pressing, he can't hold out forever!

Madara changed tactics. He reached out and gathered the black flames lingering in the dying forest. They burned across the earth, killing it all and encircling Naruto in a wall of fire. The flames closed in and burned the last living trees. Naruto acted fast and took out a scroll from his pocket, one of three he'd prepared for this battle. He unrolled it and exposed the intricate sealings covering the paper. After a few hand seals he called, "Fire sealing method!" The fire was drawn into a vortex that circled over the seal and was drawn into the paper. The paper burned hot from the energy. Naruto rolled it up and bound it tight, securing the black flames.

Madara was molding more chakra to maintain his construct. Now was his chance!

Naruto formed a clone and crafted one last rasenshuriken. With the last of his sage chakra he used his clone to throw himself at Madara. His defenses had been worn down by his barrage. One last blow up close would breach it!

"Rasenshuriken!" he cried and slammed his attack into Madara's construct. The resulting blast focused forward, but Naruto still felt the backlash from his attack tearing apart his arm. Keep pushing! Madara was one foot in front of him! He could finish this now! Madara's armor was cracked, the rasenshuriken was tearing through his armor to his flesh, he was straining, he-

But then Naruto made a fatal mistake. He looked Madara in the eye.

"Tsukuyomi!"

The world stretched and color faded away. Naruto stumbled into the unknown world in shock. This place felt wrong. The landscape was endless in all directions, completely flat. It reflected the sky, a blank red canvas with black stars.

Two black spears rose from the darkness and impaled his arms. Naruto cried as Madara emerged from the ground. "You've seen this technique before."

Naruto grit his teeth and tried to resist. His mind flashed back to a chance meeting four years ago, his first encounter with Akatsuki. Sasuke pinned to the wall, his screams like a knife.

"You will feel this for seventy-two hours. I will break you." Madara promised. His sharingan was pouring blood like a leaking faucet.

The black flames returned and consumed Naruto. His flesh melted, but his nerves somehow survived and made him feel it. Whatever resolve Naruto felt was shattered from the overwhelming pain. He cried incoherently, not for mercy, but from a base instinct to feeling pain.

The flames vanished and his body magically healed. Naruto cringed and opened his eyes. Madara still stood there, unmoving.

"Seventy-one hours, fifty-nine minutes and fifty-nine seconds to go."

A great hand of Susanoo rose from the depths, clasping him and crushing in into mush. Naruto screamed.

Naruto hit the forest floor hard. He felt numb, the torture had all blended together. He could barely feel his body. He lay unmoving on the ground, as if he'd forgotten to move.

Madara dispelled Susanoo and dropped to the ground. He heard panting, using all three eye jutsu so frequently had strained the man's body to its limits. "It's over Naruto."

He wanted to reply, but he couldn't find the strength.

"You were a greater foe than I imagined. I applaud you for that."

Naruto groaned into the ground. He was drooling. He wanted to get up and fight, but he couldn't...he just couldn't...

"I remember something about you. A girl. Hinata, that is her name?"

Naruto choked at the mention of her. He fought to raise his chin, looking Madara in the eye.

"You planned a future with this woman."

Naruto felt a small warmth when he remembered the long nights he'd spent training with her, ending with the two of them lying on the grass and looking up to the stars. They pictured what a post-war world would look like. One of peace, unity, a time to grow and prosper. He first said he loved her under the night sky. They dreamed of a home someday, a young couple in love in dark days where the future was never a promise. A house with a view of the forests and the mountains, a cozy living room filled with the smell of cooking food, the happy cries and patter of tiny feet…

"Boruto...or Himawari..." Naruto whispered to himself as he remembered the names they'd decided on. He found the strength to smile and couldn't resist.

"Good names." Madara spoke softly. "I imagine they will live in her dreams. With you, once my peace is realized. That dream will live on."

Madara began approaching him. This was the end.

Why was he telling him this? Was this Madara's way of being kind? And the worst thing was that it was working. He found some satisfaction knowing Hinata would experience their dream. Would she be happy like that for eternity? I could be a pleasant thought…

No.

Don't think like that.

It would be him with her, their real children at her side. Not a dream! He wanted to make that dream a reality. That's the only way it will mean anything! He wanted to hold her and know she was really there in his arms. He wanted to see a better world and know it wasn't just a lie. He wanted to reach those dreams the right way!

The future. He wanted a real future!

This was his will of fire. This was the strength he found!

He watched as Madara grew closer. Just a few steps away and he would be in his grasp. But he saw his opening. His attacks had worn through the armor. He could see his bruised stomach beneath ripped cloth.

Back to plan A.

Naruto took a deep breath and steadied his trembling body. It wouldn't be for long, just long enough. A few seconds to form a sliver of sage chakra. That was all he needed.

Now focus it into your palm. Remember how Hinata taught you to do it.

Wait for your chance…

It came when Madara reached for him, his eyes too full of victory to see.

The course of the world can come down to a single moment in time. Sometimes its no longer than a breath, a blink. That moment changes the world forever.

Naruto pushed up and brushed his fingers against Madara's stomach. "Juken..." Naruto collapsed on the ground.

Madara grunted from the contact and took a step back. "That was a Hyuga technique..." Madara mused, then went cold. "What is this..."

Madara began to fidget. He groped his stomach and felt his chakra. He looked worried. "What did you do to me?"

Naruto lifted his head. He grinned wearily. "That's the power of a sage you're feeling."

"A sage..." Madara said as realization dawned. "You mean..."

"Yeah...it's over. Soon you'll be stone."

Madara, the man who always stood alone against the world. But now the power of the world coursed through his body, and it was his undoing.

Madara was silent as he took this in. Naruto wondered what he would do. Lash out and kill him as his last act of vengeance? He could, there was no way Naruto could resist.

But then Madara laughed. Not a chuckle, but a full belly laugh. He threw his head back and laughed into the early morning sky. He found this hilarious. "Of all the ways to meet my end!" he doubled over, laughing must hurt after such a hard fight.

Naruto was surprised to see Madara behave like this, but he'd seen many people die over the six months of the war. Everyone had their own way of going. "It'll take some time. What will you do?"

"Really..." Madara rose and looked off into the distance to think. "I think...I'll watch one last sunrise."

He turned to Naruto and picked him up. Naruto was too tired to resist. "And you're coming with me. I'll not die alone."

Naruto chuckled as Madara slung his arm over his shoulder. "Will there be fish?"

"Fresh out." Madara smiled contently and began to walk across the blackened earth. The land of their final battle was scarred, black flames had killed the land and sealed the rivers. Nothing would grow here again. Forevermore this land would be known as the Land of Death.

He climbed the highest hill and set Naruto down before sitting next to him. The sky was lightening, and a few strands of light could be seen on the horizon.

"It's beautiful, isn't it." Naruto said.

Madara nodded, "I only wanted to make it better."

"I know that now." Naruto said. He wished it didn't have to come to this. He wished they could have settled this another way.

Madara stared at his hand. It was becoming webbed. "A toad statue. What an undignified way to go."

"Death is rarely dignified."

"You're wiser than you let on." Madara said and ignored his growing deformity. "And so my plan dies with me. The world remains a savage place."

Naruto shook his head, holding his knees to his chest. "You're wrong, Madara. The world and the people are going to grow stronger from this. This war is the war to end all wars. We've formed new bonds and forgotten our old struggles. We will move past them and into a brighter future."

"As Izuna believed." Madara said sadly, "I could never believe that. Old wounds will return, and new ones will be made so long as we form these bonds. But..." Madara whispered, "When you come to the pure world, you tell me if humanity has changed. I will hold out hope for you to succeed."

Madara's words sparked something inside him, an ember that had been fueled by similar word and dreams from his masters and father. It gave him hope. "Thank you. I will."

"If anyone can change the world for the better, though I believe no one can, I suspect it's you." Madara said. Naruto turned to look at him. His features were noticeably toad-like. Undignified indeed. "It seems I'll miss the sunrise." Madara lamented.

Naruto turned back to the horizon. The sun had yet to peak, the sky furthest was still a lovely shade of aqua. "Yeah, I guess you will." he paused, "I'll tell you about that too, when I see you again."

Madara hummed and turned to the blonde. If he was capable of warmth, this was the closest he would get. "Until then, Naruto."

Madara's body began to harden from the core outward with audible shifting of stone. His body finished its metamorphosis as the stone spread. "In the end, I could only be an obstacle. I was never meant to free the world. I could never live up to what you should have been. Izuna, forgive your foolish older brother."

The shifting stopped. Madara was gone.

A single tear trailed down Naruto's cheek. He stood up and stared into the sky. The glowing blue above the mountains hinted at the coming dawn, while the rear was still full of twinkling stars. Change was on the horizon.

He killed so many with this war, and now he added another body to that list. It had to be worth it. All that sacrifice, all that pain had to mean something. He would make it mean something if he had to. The world would never return to the cycle of pain. He would make sure of it. He would dedicate his _life_ to it!

"Naruto! Everyone, I found him! Up here!"

Naruto turned just in time to see a giant fireball rise into the sky. A signal for others. A dozen shinobi from all different villages surrounded him at first, and hundreds more joined him by the minute. This must be the search party. It was massive!

"Naruto!" Finally, a voice he recognized. Sakura landed in front of him and looked him over. "You're suffering chakra exhaustion. _You_ are suffering from chakra exhaustion! What were you doing running off by yourself?!"

Naruto didn't say anything. He just wrapped his arms around her. He was so happy to see her.

Kakashi landed on the other side, followed by Yamato and Sai. His friends in the rookie nine, team Gai and from across the allied forces surrounded him.

Hinata broke through the crowds and nearly tackled him.

"Naruto!" she cried as she grabbed him. Naruto wrapped his arms around her and the two dropped until they were kneeling within the circle of people. "I thought he took you...I'm so glad you're safe!"

"I'm okay." he said reassuringly. His world felt complete holding her.

Kakashi placed a hand on his shoulder, "Naruto, what happened here?"

Naruto looked at him from Hinata's shoulder. He smiled, "I won."

"Won what?"

"The war." Naruto pointed to the statue.

Tsunade approached and looked to the statue. She paled, "You didn't..."

"I did. That's Madara." he said. He didn't mention the eight tailed beasts he contained. Best if those were lost forever, with him serving as the last jinchuriki.

The crowd went silent as they stared at what remained of the legend. "You couldn't have..." A muttered.

"But I did." Naruto and Hinata got up. Naruto pulled away and gave Hinata a reassuring look. They had time now. They could wait a little longer. He turned and looked over the crowd. "I couldn't have people dying for me anymore. So I finished this fighting once and for all. I secured the future!"

Naruto turned to the horizon and spread his arms wide, "And we decide what our future becomes. We can rebuild this world better than ever before. A world of peace and love and unity. And we'll reach it together. The future is ours to create!"

Naruto was too enamored with the possibility that he didn't notice everyone else was silent, too busy taking everything in.

The war was...over.

The war was over!

A cry went up, then another, until the entire crowd was cheering. Cloud shinobi hugged stone, mist hugged leaf and sand. People celebrated together and cried together. Madara Uchiha was dead. The war was over!

A slow chant spread like wildfire. The name of their hero. Their savior.

Naruto!

Naruto!

Naruto!

Together they watched as dawn rose on a new world.

 **Codex Entries**

 **-Allied Shinobi Forces Official Report: The Loss of the Eight-Tailed Beast**

Killer B and his bodyguard were ambushed by six resurrected members of the Akatsuki: Kisame, Sasori, Deidara, Kakuzu, Nagato and Konan, along with a battalion of Grass, Waterfall and Moon shinobi in the Land of Sound. B and his company of shinobi were en route from Fire Country Central Command Center to Joint Forces HQ in Lightning Country at the orders of Lord Raikage. They were ambushed shortly after entering the Land of Sound. Scouts report enemy forces hid in a previously unknown ruin, we suspect it may be one of Orochimaru's former hideouts. The Sannin is one of the few capable of constructing a site that shields shinobi from sensors. All ninety-three of B's guards were slaughtered, along with two hundred and eighteen enemy shinobi. Seals confirm that at least three resurrected Akatsuki were successfully sealed. Land scarring confirms B unleashed his beast, but was captured regardless.

The Raikage ordered a massive search party be sent after B. Lady Mizukage offered to lead the search party after a private audience with A, likely convincing him to have someone impartial lead instead of himself. Lady Hokage offered to serve as second in command. Naruto Uzumaki vehemently requested to participate but was rejected for strategic concerns. A doubled Naruto's guard over concerns he may be the last jinchuriki.

The search lasted five days. Kiba Inuzuka and Akamaru managed to trace B's scent to a cavern in the mountains fifty kilometers off. The search party encountered no resistance. Inside the mountain they discovered another abandoned lair. It was deserted save for B, who was imprisoned in a cell. His condition was critical, but Lady Hokage managed to stabilize him at the scene. She diagnosed severe chakra trauma after having his beast forcibly removed. He was returned to the Village Hidden in the Clouds and was given extensive care. Lady Tsunade commented B was fortunate to have become a jinchuriki in his adolescence; any earlier and the Eight-Tails removal would have killed him. B is expected to make a full, if long recovery with proper therapy.

The consequences of this operation was the loss of one of the Allied Shinobi Forces only two remaining Tailed Beasts. Only the Nine Tailed Fox kept Madara from his plan. A responded by redoubling Naruto's guard and refusing to allow him outside of headquarters unless accompanied by a Kage or Mifune.

 **A/N**

This vignettes stories will be stories in TRTP that I want to write, but don't necessarily fit into the chapter structure I have set up for the story. The next vignette will be in a series. Much shorter and succinct that this one. It will focus on the early years of John Shepard and his older sister Jane.

The part where Naruto is staring into the sky after Madara's death is reflected in the title image you see on both TRTP stories.

Let me know if you like these side stories, please review and tell me your thoughts. :)


	2. Like Jane, Part One

**Vignettes**

 **Like Jane**

 **Part One**

Johnny backed into the alley as three older boys approached. He shifted his hand behind him in a vain attempt to hide the bread.

"Come on, we just wanna see what you got." The largest feigned innocence.

Johnny scowled. "Leave me alone," he muttered, trying to sound strong.

"Whoa, careful boys! We got a tough guy here."

"A tough guy? Is that what you are, little boy? A tough guy?"

Johnny took another step back and tried to fight back tears. He was afraid. Gangs like this didn't mess around. And he needed this food. He was so hungry…

It wasn't supposed to be like this. He should be back in his family's apartment. He didn't care if mommy and daddy fought. He wanted to be back in their living room playing with Jane while they watched.

Why did they have to die? Why did they leave him and Jane alone?

Johnny stepped onto a tin can behind him and tripped from under it. He fell on his rear and shouted in pain.

"Aww, tough guy fell. Here, let's help him up." The biggest said as they approached.

Johnny scooted away, tucking the bread tightly at his side against his worn coat. He pushed away until he felt his back hit the dumpster at the end of the alley. It rung hollow like a bell.

"Nowhere to run now, tough guy." The big one chucked and leaned down. Johnny curled into himself and closed his eyes tight. He could only wait for it to be over.

"Leave him alone!"

The furthest boy turned just in time to see the fist clocking his jaw. The boy reeled and fell on a bag of trash beside the wall. The girl who hit him was slimmer than Johnny, she always insisted he eat more than she did, and had flaming red hair that fell to her shoulders.

"What the-get her!" The big one shouted. He and the other rushed her. The girl took the first hit to the cheek, but didn't flinch and delivered an untrained but powerful blow to the boy's gut. He doubled over and the girl leaped for the large one.

Johnny watched as his sister traded blows with the big one. He had weight and he knew how to use it, this clearly wasn't his first fight. But his sister made up for her size and inexperience with grit and determination. She took every blow and gave as bad as she got.

But the first boy she hit got to his feet behind her and surprised her by grabbing her arm. She tried to struggle, but then the other boy grabbed her other arm. She struggled and shouted, but couldn't break free. The large boy cracked his knuckles and spit at her feet. "You're gonna regret that," he threatened, rearing his fist.

Johnny got up and screamed as he charged the boy. The bread fell to the ground. He didn't care. No one messed with his sister!

He tackled the boy from behind. Even with his tiny body he pushed him off his feet. He fell to the ground and Johnny got on top of him and rained down blows. "Dont! Touch! My! Sister!"

The older boy was dazed from his tackle, not from his punches. When he came to he grabbed Johnny's scraggy hair and pulled him into his fist. Johnny cried but tried to stay on top.

"Johnny! You bastard!" he heard his sister cry. He stomped on one of the boy's feet and made him let go, then grabbed his collar and pulled him into a headbutt. There was a loud crack as his nose broke. Then he turned to the other.

"Stop! Reds, at your feet!"

The large boy pushed Johnny aside and got to his feet. The other two boys got away from his sister and ran towards the voice. His sister ran over to him, "You okay?"

He rubbed his lip, he didn't think he was bleeding. "Yeah, just a little dizzy. You're bleeding Jane. You have a cut on your cheek."

"It's fine. Come on, let's get you up."

Johnny grabbed her hand and let her pull him to his feet. They turned to see a new boy walking towards them. He was much older than the others. Sixteen, maybe. "What's your names?"

"Why should we tell you?" Jane asked defiantly to challenge him.

"'Cuz I asked all nice-like. You don't want me to ask the other way." He looked to her, then to Johnny.

Jane narrowed her eyes and got in front of Johnny. "He's John. I'm Jane."

"Siblings. Got a last name?"

"Why do you want to know."

"'Cuz I do."

She scowled, "Shepard."

He whistled, "John and Jane Shepard. And how old are ya?"

"He's ten. I'm twelve."

"Awful young to be out alone," he strolled past the two over to the dropped bread. He picked it up and looked it over. "You two hungry?"

He looked over his shoulder, but neither of them answered. "Ah, you're hungry. Orphanage don't feed 'em like they used to, not in our kinda neighborhoods. Too many mouths to feed, not enough to go around. Sometimes people get left out." He idly tossed it to them and Johnny caught it. "But a loaf of bread, that's the best you can do? How long you been on the streets?"

"What do you care?" Jane glared.

"'Cuz I do. You know what we eat? Meat. Pork, chicken, beef, you name it. Got filtered water too. Even candy. Ain't that right, boys?"

The large one laughed, "Sure is! And plenty of it, got the proof right here!" he said and grabbed his belly.

The teenager leered when he saw the hunger in their eyes. "You want some? Come join up with the Tenth Street Reds."

"Why would you want us?"

"'Cuz you're half starved and you just gave some of my best boys black eyes. We're always open to good talent." He turned to leave, circling a finger in the air and the other boys fell in behind him. "Stop by anytime."

Jane watched the boys leave. She bit her lip, "Where do we go. In case we change our minds?"

"Where d'ya think? Tenth street!" He laughed as he rounded the corner.

Jane turned to Johnny and grabbed the bread. "You get caught by the owner?"

"No, just them."

"Good job. Let's eat." She broke the bread and examined it, then gave the larger piece to him.

"Jane, you take the big piece. You're bigger..."

"Because I already did my growing. You'll need it if you wanna be big like me." She insisted. Johnny relented and took the bread and together the two ate.

When they were finished Johnny took out a small well worn canteen. "You're still bleeding. Let me get your cut."

She waved him off, "It's fine."

"No it's not. Just sit still," he insisted as he walked to her side. Jane gave in and let him work at cleaning her wound. She felt cool water run down her cheek and kept quiet while Johnny cleaned it with a spare cloth. Their mothers, she noted.

"Let's do it," she finally spoke.

"You mean the Reds?"

"Yeah." she nodded, looking determined. "We're gonna have to learn to live on the streets. If we have to, let's do it with the best."

"I don't know..."

"Listen," she turned to him, "Whatever we do, we do it together. It's you and me no matter what."

Johnny looked into her eyes. He was afraid, he didn't want to be around those mean guys. They were bullies. But his sister looked so steady, so focused. She was certain this was what they had to do.

It'd always been like this, he always had his older sister's back. Because he was always behind it. Always trailing in her footsteps. But every time he stumbled, she turned around and picked him back up. She never left him behind. So he would do it. He would keep following her.

"You and me. Okay."

 **A/N**

This'll be a five-part short series focusing on John and Jane. They'll all be like this, five single scenes that spell out the important bits of Shepard's back story and how it shaped him. Since they're shorter, I'd expect I can post one of these a week if I keep a steady pace with my main story. Which means this series should be finished in a month.

This is something I've wanted to add to the main story but never felt it would fit in, and that gave me the idea to start a short little vignettes series focusing on all those little stories. I was tempted to post it to the Mass Effect section, but I decided to keep it here.

Someone gave me the idea to add a few "What If" stories here. Like in Chapter 17, if the "good guy" won on the Collector Base, Shepard goes beyond the Omega 4 Relay and finds him sitting on a throne of Collector Corpses waiting for him. That would be fun to write.

Anyways, tell me what you think. Until next time!


	3. Like Jane, Part Two

**Vignettes**

 **Like Jane**

 **Part Two**

Jane Shepard picked up her standard issue cover and set it on her head. She looked at herself in the mirror and frowned, then tilted it ever so slightly to the left. Perfect. She looked herself over and was almost satisfied, but then she caught her ribbons. They were slightly crooked. They'd been perfect when she set them a few minutes ago. Darn things, always seemed to shift when she put her uniform on. She needed to remember that.

She sighed and unbuttoned her top so she could get at the frogs holding her ribbon rack. You'd think after initial training she'd be able to dress herself properly. Too many years on the streets without standards. No one cared if her belt buckle was aligned with her zipper on the streets. Old habits die hard, even after basic training. But die they would. She was a marine now. She may be killing more than bad habits someday.

She righted her ribbons and set the frog, then looked at the mirror to make sure they were straight with her pocket. Perfect, her drill instructor may have actually complimented her. She was as on point as a marine could be.

"You done yet, sis?" She heard Johnny behind her.

She looked over her shoulder as Johnny walked into the room. He was wearing a black school uniform consisting of pressed trousers, shined shoes, a blazer with gold buttons and trim. If you ignored his shaggy hair her brother looked almost respectable.

"Looks good on you, Johnny. How about me?" She smiled and snapped a crisp salute.

Johnny put his hands in his pockets and shrugged, "Seen it before. You came home in that, remember?"

"Yeah, still had the drink stains from liberty." Jane chuckled and brushed off a line of lint.

Johnny smiled a bit, "I'd have paid to see you cut loose for a change."

"Someday. First day you're legal I'm taking you on your first bar run." She had to laugh. Johnny snuck some of the older Reds' secret stash a few years back. They'd shared it, half each. He was hammered by his third bottle. She'd ended up hiding him in a dumpster to keep him from running around the city like a madman.

"I coulda been there, if you let me spend the credits. I wanted to see you graduate." Johnny huffed and crossed his arms.

She knew that look. It had been a sore topic on one of her few calls home. "We didn't have the money for it. You know how expensive tuition is at Manswell Academy."

"Bet half of it went to these darn uniforms." Johnny grumbled and tugged the trim of his sleeve. The material was thick, it'd keep him warm.

"Treat it right, then. It'll be hard to replace on a Private's pay."

"I still don't like you doing this." The fifteen-year-old grumbled.

"Doing what?"

"This!" Johnny raised his voice, "You don't need to send me up north for school. I'm doing fine right here!"

"I'm not sending you anywhere. You earned your spot in the Academy, blew the competition right outta the water. There's a reason the Reds made you keep the books, none of them had half the mind you do."

"You did fine," he pointed at her, "hell you turned out great! Why do I need any different?"

"Because you can have different, and I'm making sure you get it!" She grabbed his shoulders. "You need to get outta this town. Away from the Reds."

Johnny lost his edge and looked away uncertainly, "But they're our friends...it's been our lives for five years. We might not'a made it without them..."

"And we paid them back plenty. We don't owe them a thing anymore." She lifted his chin and looked him dead in the eye, then pulled him into a powerful hug. "You stay with the Reds any longer, you'll never leave this city. It's too small for you Johnny. You just don't know it yet."

She leaned her head into his shoulder and let herself be still. She wanted this moment to last. She didn't know when they'd be together like this again…

She felt Johnny slowly return her embrace. His hands linked behind her back and held her close to him. Then he started huffing, his shoulders shaking. She heard him sniffing, muffled against her shoulder.

"I don't wanna lose you."

They held each other tight. Jane clenched her eyes tight. Don't cry, she told herself. You can't cry, not in front of him. He needs you to be strong. "You'll never lose me, little brother." She said, thankful her voice wasn't cracking.

Johnny's did, "You can't say that. They're gonna send you into the Traverse. I see the reports, colonies keep getting hit. There's slavers and pirates and...and people always die. There's always a body count."

"Hey," She whispered softly as she pulled away, "Look at me."

Johnny quickly wiped his eyes clean, but that didn't stop fresh tears from replacing them.

"You remember mom?" She asked.

He nodded slowly, "Course I do."

Jane gave him a small smile, "She loved watching you play with your toy starship. You were her little angel..." she paused, then grinned softly, "her sugarbug. Her pumpkin butter. Her snuggle bunny!"

Johnny gently punched her. "Stop it," he laughed a bit through the tears. It wasn't much, but it meant the world to her.

Jane chuckled before continuing. "I promised her something, you know. Before she died." It was a hard word to use, even now. But she was never one to hide behind soft words. Johnny looked at her after wiping away a tear, "I was gonna protect you. Then, now and always. All the light years in the galaxy ain't gonna matter for that."

Johnny looked at the ground uncertainly, "Yeah it does. You won't be here."

"I'll be here," she pointed to his chest. "I know you're afraid. Living on your own at the Academy, it's gonna be scary at first. I know. But you'll get by. You'll adapt. That's how we survive." She squeezed his shoulder. He smiled a bit even while staring at her feet. "This isn't goodbye. We'll never have a real goodbye."

Johnny nodded. He was fiddling with his fingers. It was his tell he was thinking of something and wondering how to say it. "Thanks, sis..." he said.

"I always got your back. Just wait, first person tries to mess with ya gets a sniper round straight from the Charon Relay!"

Johnny snorted and covered his mouth. "That's not how relays work, sis."

"You're the smart one." She grinned and rubbed his scruffy hair. "Come on. We still have one night together. Let's go visit mom and dad."

Johnny nodded, "Yeah, let's go." He led her to the door to their hotel and grabbed his black cap to go with his uniform. He was putting on gloves when he paused. "Something I've been meaning to tell you."

She raised an eyebrow, "What is it Johnny?"

He paused and cracked his knuckles. "When I graduate in, well, whenever that is, I'm gonna enlist. In the marines, same as you." He looked up and pointed at her, "Don't try and talk me out of it, I've made up my mind!"

Jane stared, this came out of nowhere. Johnny never talked about the military before she mentioned she was thinking about joining, and he'd protested that until the day she shipped out for training. But that's who Johnny was. He'd always struggled with change. From losing their parents to joining the Reds...now going off to the Academy, where he'd be living alone for the first time in his life. And even that was only because she told him to.

Johnny only changed when it started with her. He only went somewhere new because he was following her. And he was trying to do it again. Johnny didn't want to see that they couldn't always be there for each other.

She wanted to tell him no, the marines was no place for a boy like him. He could be so much more. A doctor, scientist, lawyer, anything he set his mind to. But all he set his mind to was following her. He'd never achieve anything on his own until he was out of her shadow. But…

Jane smiled and shook her head. How could she say no, after Johnny finally stood up for himself? She hadn't talked him into anything, he came to this choice all on his own. Maybe he'd change his mind, maybe not. She may not approve, but damn anyone who didn't think she'd support him. Just like he'd supported her all these years.

Jane lightly punched him in the shoulder. "Ow!" he gently rubbed it, "What was that for?"

"Where'd this spunk come from? The Reds beat some into you while I was away?"

He frowned, "Quit joking Jane, I'm serious."

"I know Johnny," she said and lightly ruffled his hair. He smiled a bit under her assault. "First we both gotta do our best with where we're at right now. That means school for you, promise?"

"Promise," he said.

Her little brother...she did the best she could. She hoped mom would be proud of her, and of him.

"Ready to go?" Jane asked.

Johnny slowly finished putting on his gloves. "Not really...but let's go anyway."

 **A/N**

And there's part 2 of this 5 part series. Jane and Johnny are off on their separate paths, but Johnny's decision promises it won't be for long. I love how vague the original Mass Effect makes Shepard's backstory, it allows us just enough background to build our image of who the Commander is so we can begin roleplaying.

The next part should be up next friday with an update in the main story. That's about halfway written as of now, and I expect to finish the draft by the end of the weekend. I'm beginning to think of what I can write for other characters, possibly short one-offs, not multi-part vignettes like the Shepards are receiving. And I still plan on writing short stories of the crew and their time on the Normandy. I'm thinking Jiraiya's novels may have to come into play...


	4. Like Jane, Part Three

**Vignettes**

 **Like Jane**

 **Part Three**

She didn't know how was thrown against the crates, only that her ears were ringing a deafening pitch. She didn't know how the taste of copper found its way to her tongue, only that it was strangely warm. And she didn't know how much of her body was still intact. Only that she was somehow still alive.

"Chief! Come on, get up!"

A scream pierced the ringing. She cracked open her eyes and saw the sky covered in a haze. The smoke burned her eyes, but she did not close them. She remembered.

She reached to her side and felt around for her rifle, finding it just within arms reach. She dragged it back and used it as a crutch to force herself up. And as she stood the ringing subsided and was replaced with something much worse.

The explosions. The gunfire. The screams. Elysium was under attack.

She wiped away the dirt in her eye and bolted back to the makeshift barricade of crates and pallets. Part of it was blown open from the rocket-propelled grenade that sent her flying back. Beside it was a young man, who'd been much less lucky than her.

"You okay, Chief?" A woman next to her asked. One of the civilians who chose to fight. Two marines she recognized and one she didn't fired over the barricade behind her. They were trying to slow the coming assault.

"What's the situation? Is the rear barricade ready?"

She nodded, "They just finished binding the pieces together."

Excellent, she thought as she looked back into the heart of the colony. She could see it in the distance nestled between two mobile colony shelters. The rear barricade was much more defensible than this one. The slavers would have to cross a killing field go get to it.

Unfortunately, so would they.

"We're falling back." Jane ordered, "Erina, take the rest of the civilians and get to the barricade. We'll hold until you do."

Erina's eyes widened, "All the civilians? Can you hold it without us?"

"We're marines. We'll make do. Once you're there, set up and cover our own retreat." She didn't give Erina a chance to refuse. She stood and called out to the rest of the defenders, "All civilians, fall back to the rear defenses! Marines, with me!"

Most of the civilians didn't need to be told twice. Some were prior service, but most were green as a fresh-shaved recruit. Farm hands, shopkeeps, mechanics, these were no soldiers. But they volunteered to take up arms and defend their homes. Still, she could tell some were close to breaking.

She caught Erina's gaze. She stared a moment longer before she picked up and sprinted across the field with the rest. Jane didn't watch her go, she turned straight to the front.

She joined her marines, setting her rifle on the barricade and lining up her sights. The foreground was covered in swirling ash and fumes obscuring her targets in a shadowy haze. But she was a marine. She trained in rain. In snow. In sun. In ocean. In air. In space. Always to win. These invaders would not be saved by soot.

She saw the shadows moving through the smoke, took aim and fired. No thinking, all instinct. Muscle memory lined up her shots and pulled the trigger. Gravity made the bodies drop.

Too many shadows approaching too fast. She could feel their lucky shots smashing against her shields. No one brought armor on shore leave, those shields were all they had. They had to make them count.

"Shepard! It's Erina. We're set up and ready to cover you!" the woman said over the comm.

Not a moment too soon. "Copy. Marines, fall back! Fall back!" She picked herself and gave suppressing fire until her weapon's heat sinks began to whine, then turned and bolted with her marines.

She was halfway down the field when the first batarian squad crossed their forward barricade and fired on the retreating soldiers while the civilians fired back. Hypersonic rounds passed around her in every direction, friendly and foe. She sprinted with the devil at her heels until she vaulted over the barricade.

Her lungs were screaming, but no time to stop for breath. "Any injuries?" she asked.

A marine called, "Wilkins took a shot to the arm, but otherwise we're all fine!"

"Get him some medi-gel and see if he can still fire a gun. Everyone else hunker down, we will not let this barricade fall!"

Her remaining marines lined up on the barricade with the volunteers. They were ready for more. They might just pull this off. No, they had to. Elysium might hold them off until reinforcements arrive…

A runner approaching caught her attention, "Chief, another shuttle landed at the southern defenses! We need to reinforce!"

Jane turned back to the barricade. It was a solid defensive position, the bulk of their attack would come from here. But they'd taken fewer losses than expected, she could afford to let a few go. "Lorenzo! Take the two civilians with you and head to the south side! The rest of you hold here! Behind you is the heart of Elysium. Your friends, your families and everyone you care for is counting on you. We are their shields. And we will not break! Hold the line!"

They roared in response. These people were brave, and would give it their all. She was honored they chose her to lead them.

"I'm going to check on the northern line. Hold until I return."

The rest of the defenders acknowledged her command and manned their posts against the coming assault. Just a bit longer, she thought. Reinforcements were on their way.

She left them to their duty and moved for their northern line. A jamming signal was blocking all mid-to-long range communications. Runners were their only means to coordinate, and the northern line had been quiet for some time. No news was good news, she thought. The north was rocky, and the defenders were holed up on top of a hill. It made little sense to try and break them there. The dozen marines and civilians defending it would be more than enough. Including Johnny…

Just a little bit of peace, that's all she'd wanted with him. No assignments, no training, no duty. She wanted it to be just like the old days. Just for a while, where the ranks on their uniforms didn't keep them apart in formation. Of course it all had to go to hell.

Jane rounded the corner to the silent defense post, and that's when she saw the bodies. Human bodies.

Dozens of dead marred lay unmoving behind the barricade and in the courtyard behind it. Fatal gunshots, explosive wounds, but even stranger, stab wounds and blunt force trauma. How the hell did the batarians get up close? Where were they now? Where was her brother!?

"Johnny!" She called out desperately as she forgot about everything else, "Johnny, can you hear me? Where are you!?" She scanned over the bodies, all the exposed faces. None moving, but none of them Johnny.

A hand peeked out from below a fallen tree. Jane saw it and bolted around to see Johnny leaning against the body of the tree, his hand covering a wound in his side.

"Stay still!" Jane said as she knelt beside him and looked over his wound. He'd been stabbed. Lots of blood, but it didn't look deep. No organ damage. Jane took some medi-gel, more than she needed, but all she could think about was stopping his bleeding. "What happened?" She said as she applied it.

Johnny hissed as she worked, "They came up the hill, we...we didn't think they were slavers..."

She looked up, "They let them up to the barricade? What the hell was everyone thinking?"

"They weren't batarians..." Johnny said, before whimpering. "They...they were human, Jane. We thought they were...we thought they..."

Lightning struck her heart. That explained why there were so many bodies. They must have feigned allegiance, come in close, and…

"Why would they do this to us?" Johnny asked, desperate for an answer he couldn't find, "They're human. They're...we're...why? I-I can't..." Johnny gripped his head, fighting to understand, and failing.

Jane finished treating his physical damage, but as she looked at him she knew he was coming away with more than one scar. She cursed herself, she should have kept him close. She could have protected him.

"It wasn't your fault." Jane said, pulling him into a hug. "You did everything you could. I'm proud of you."

Johnny buried his face in her shoulder and pulled her tightly against him. He felt him shudder, trying to fight back his tears. She let him have this moment in the chaos. A moment to relieve.

She heard a roaring and looked up. Her eyes widened, "Johnny, inside!" She picked him up and pulled him into the nearby house, shutting the door just before the shuttle descended into the clearing of corpses.

Jane and Johnny were on their knees, peeking through the window as the shuttle doors opened. Ten human slavers emerged from the shuttle and began inspecting the bodies as the shuttle flew away. Some took weapons, finding them an improvement over their own. Others looted every corner of their person for whatever might turn a profit.

"Those...bastards!" Johnny snarled, his disbelief turned to disgusted anger.

Jane said nothing, silently observing. The squad finished their looting and formed up. A tall figure in front led them deeper into the colony. Towards the heart.

"No. They'll flank the southern defenders!" Jane gasped.

"We have to do something." Johnny said.

"You can't, Johnny. You're hurt."

"Yes I can!, I'm fine I have to!" Johnny stood up, looking determined. "I'm a marine just like you, sis. I want to defend this colony too. And I know you're going out there, there's not a chance in hell I'm letting you go alone!"

Jane stared at her brother. Part of her knew he was right. He took the oath, same as her. Same as all the other marines out there fighting. She looked back at the corpses, she wondered how many of them Johnny had killed. He wasn't just her little brother anymore.

No. He would _always_ be her little brother.

"Okay Johnny," she lied, "We do this together."

"I'm with you," he said assuredly.

"I'll take point, clear the corner." Jane picked up her rifle and headed to the door. She paused and looked over her shoulder at Johnny. His hair was a mess, must even be out of regs. She had the distinct urge to ruffle it. "Johnny?"

"Sis?"

"I love you. You've made me so proud." She wanted him to remember that.

"I love you too, sis." His voice was strained. He was scared, but his adrenaline was pumping.

Jane opened the door and stepped outside, then tapped a button on her omni-tool. The door slammed shut and the circuits fried.

She turned as Johnny began pounding on the door, shouting at her to let him out. His voice was just a vibration, too muffled to understand. But she didn't need to hear, she knew everything he was trying to say.

She leaned close to the door, to the glass screen where Johnny was trying desperately to reach her, his face slightly pressed against it. She leaned into the screen, tapping her forehead against it. It was surprisingly cool. The clear layer was all that kept them apart. It was a world. A galaxy. A lifetime.

There was so much she still wanted to say. She wanted to tussle his greasy hair and laugh. She wanted to tell him her old stories about what mom and dad were like. She wanted to take him back to Tenth Street and show him how far they've come.

She wanted a thousand more moments. A million more moments. And all she had left was one.

One single moment.

But…

She smiled. She could see the tears in his eyes.

It would have to do.

"Goodbye Johnny."

She ran, leaving her brother behind. And as she ran into fray, as she ambushed those who would take everything from the protected, she did not do it for the Alliance. Not for humanity, or for the innocent. As she fought, as she bled, as she killed, as she won...and as she died, she did for her brother, who she promised to always protect.

For he was her heart, and she knew she would always be in his.

 **A/N**

Whenever I write something and the words just seem to flow, when the story writes itself, I know I have something special. That was the final part of this chapter. I still feel it swelling in my chest.

Goodbye, Jane.


	5. Like Jane, Part Four

**Vignettes**

 **Like Jane**

 **Part Four**

He was standing on a hill. A hill whose silence only amplified the heartbreak he was hearing inside. There were no trees to rustle in the wind and the trimmed grass was too short to wave in the breeze. This land no longer belonged to nature. But neither did it belong to the city. The great buildings and blaring energy of the metropolis were in the outskirts of this sacred place. This land belonged to heroes, ones who could no longer enjoy it.

Johnny held tightly the Star of Terra, one that didn't belong to him as he stared down at the mound of freshly turned earth. Grass would grow there soon, just one more layer separating him from the person he'd followed his entire life. One day this spot would be indistinguishable from the thousands of other plots on the hill. Flowers would die and rot, and he couldn't be here to replace them.

Only the markings on the headstone would separate this plot from the rest. He wondered if anyone else would notice.

He looked at it and read it again for the innumerate time.

 _Jane Shepard_

 _Gunnery Chief_

 _2152-2176_

 _Hero of the Skyllian Blitz_

 _Star of Terra_

 _Per Aspera Ad Astra_

Johnny focused on the final line. Per aspera ad astra. Through hardships, to the stars. But they reached the stars long ago. Why had the suffering never stopped?

Where did he go now? Where were his stars to reach for? Only Jane had ever seen them. They never left her eyes, and she never hesitated to follow the path they created. So he followed her, wherever she had gone. She'd bathed in starlight as he lingered in her shadow.

But now she was gone. And he was blind. This grave was as far as he could follow Where could he go? The galaxy was growing larger every day. It was easy for a blind man to get lost.

"You alright, son?"

Johnny was broken from his stupor. He turned. Commander David Anderson stood with his arms linked behind his back. Lambent light glittered across his waterfall of medals pinned to his dress uniform. His face was somber, full of understanding.

Johnny went rigid, then snapped to a hasty salute. "Sir! Sorry, I, uh, didn't see you there."

Anderson gracefully returned his salute and stepped closer, "How about we set ceremony aside? I think we've both had enough for one day."

Shepard looked at the storied officer and nodded rhythmically, "Thank you sir," he said with formality a private can never lose with a superior.

Anderson looked Johnny in the eye and placed a hand on his shoulder, "The service was hours ago. You haven't left, have you?"

Johnny looked guiltily at his sister's grave. He didn't know where to go. But he wouldn't tell Anderson that. He didn't want to admit how lost he truly was.

"I just...need more time, Sir." Johnny mumbled without looking.

Anderson nodded and walked to the grave. He clasped his hands behind his back. Johnny looked and wondered what his thoughts were. Why did he come back?

"She was a good soldier. And a better sister. I know you've been hearing this from everyone, but I am sorry for your loss."

Johnny tightened his jaw, fighting the trembling he felt in his chin. He didn't want to be weak, not in front of anyone else. "I miss her..." he said, just keeping his voice from cracking.

The older man stood stone still. "Time, son. Time heals even our deepest wounds. But it does leave scars."

Johnny clenched his eyes and whispered, "I, don't know. I don't..." he paused, taking a shaky breath. He couldn't see his future. All his fears, his doubts came crashing to a front. His shoulders trembled, "How do you live with this? How do you go on alone?"

"We will be there with you. Your brothers and sisters in uniform." He turned, and put a gentle hand on Johnny's shoulder. "The pain never fades, Shepard. It will always linger and re-emerge. But one day you'll notice the good days start to outnumber the bad. That's when you'll know you're going to make it."

Anderson's hard gaze captured Johnny's focus and refused to let it go. Johnny could feel the man's composure, his years of hard-won strength. And he gave it to him willingly. A warm tingling ran through his spine like fireworks, like stars. Ones he could follow. It may prove fleeting, but right now Johnny didn't feel so lost.

Johnny breathed and nodded, "Thank you, Sir...I'm sorry too. I know, she was your candidate. For N7."

"I'm not here to mourn a candidate. Let's remember what's truly important." Anderson nodded tersely and returned to the grave.

Johnny followed his gaze and read over his sister's name. Jane Shepard, Hero of the Skyllian Blitz. What would she be doing now if their situations were reversed? What if he died instead of her? How long would she have stood here before moving on? Not long, he realized. She would never forget him, but she would never have stopped moving.

She used to tell him, 'You can't move forward if you keep looking back. You'll trip'. And she never did. She kept the past in her heart and her eyes on the path ahead. He kept his eyes on her. Now she was gone, and the road was open to him. He still didn't know where he could go.

Except he saw where her eyes had set before she died. He saw her path forward. Maybe he could follow it, in her stead.

"Sir..." He began hesitantly, "I can go in her place."

"Excuse me son?" Anderson turned.

Shepard swallowed and found his voice, "Sir, you have open slot for a Shepard." He looked at Anderson with new-found determination. "Let me fill it. I can finish what she started."

The great man watched Johnny carefully. He squared off with him and glared. "Say it again. Now try and act like you deserve it." He said. All the kindness and empathy had left his voice.

Johnny faltered. The old man towered over him, "Sir, I...I want to take her place. In N7-"

"What deludes you into thinking you can?" His voice cut like a knife.

"I'm not deluded, Sir! I-"

"You know you can't replace her."

Johnny froze. He wasn't just talking about N7. How could he assume to take her place as a leader? As a driving force? As someone who stared firmly into destiny and advanced? He couldn't find an answer. And so he said nothing as he stared, ashamed.

Anderson shook his head and turned away. He spoke harshly as he explained, "No one in N7 is 'replaced'. The slot a candidate earns belongs to them and no one else."

Johnny briefly glanced to the N7 designation on his dress uniform. He could see why the Commander was angry, his request was like an insult to a prime point in his pride, and that of many others. Johnny looked away in shame, "I'm sorry, Sir. I didn't mean..."

Anderson sighed, "Look around us, Shepard." He motioned to the sea of graves, "This is the world we live in. A world built by the sacrifices of good men and women who died before their time to protect it. Their losses have given us something they will never have again. It gives us opportunity to choose.

"You're going to face millions of these choices in your life whether or not you're prepared for them. Those choices will define you. They will define those around you. And their consequences may be beyond anything you imagined."

The Commander lowered his arms and looked back at the mesmerized Private. He spoke softly in his conclusion, "Now it is time for you to choose. Where will you go from here? No one can make that decision for you, not anymore. So choose wisely, Shepard."

Johnny watched numbly as Anderson left the cemetery until he was beyond his sight. He cast a long shadow over the gravestones as the sun neared its departure.

He looked back at his sister's resting place. It felt lonelier than before. He'd lost the one link he had left to his sister, the one road he saw ahead. What now? The road ahead was again unknown. What would his sister-

He paused. There it was. It was always 'what would Jane do?'. Even now he was trying to follow her ghost. How long had it been since he asked 'what would I do?'

What would Johnny do? Where did Johnny want to go?

His sister's grave was silent. He would never find another answer here. He had to find them on his own. They were back with his unit. They were off earth, hiding among the stars. Per aspera ad astra.

He clutched Jane's Star of Terra medal tightly in his grip, then pocketed it and turned away. Jane would want him to go on, to live a life he made for himself. So he couldn't do it for her. It had to be for him, for a future he wanted for himself. He didn't know where this lonely road would take him, but he wanted to reach the end, wherever that may be.

There was an ember burning in his soul. That ember would catch fire and ignite an inferno. Johnny found his reason to keep moving. It would be hard. He would struggle, he would sacrifice and he would fall, but he would find his way forward.

He took his first steps away from Jane and did not look back. He kept her in his heart, but his eyes faced forward. And for the first time they held a determination all his own.

 **A/N**

There will be one final part of this vignettes series, then I intend to write a few vignettes aboard the Normandy. If anyone has any interesting ideas for character interactions or side stories, I'm always open to fresh ideas. Until next time!


	6. Like Jane, Part Five

**Vignettes**

 **Like Jane**

 **Part Five**

Death is a specter always on the edge of the human mind. Sometimes it tapped a man on his shoulder to remind him of their inevitable meeting. It came as a chill in your core, an inescapable foresight that one day, your life will end. Death favored a passive role until a man's final reckoning. It used subtle hints to keep us in line and make itself remembered. But sometimes Death took a face. That face could be familiar, a desire, or something violently monstrous.

Today it had chosen the latter. It chose a thresher maw.

Johnny stumbled as the earth shook. It was moving again. His head was splitting from the screaming blaring through the radio. Dozens of voices merged into incomprehensible chaos.

Their Sergeant tried to regain control, "Get up! On your feet, marines! Be ready!"

And do what, Johnny asked? Their guns weren't effective, the plates were too strong!

And then it began again, that familiar rumbling growing stronger, "It's breaching!" Johnny called.

"Jackson, Romero, Toombs, heavy artillery! Everyone else, weapons hot!"

The thresher erupted from the ground, spraying dirt and rock in all directions. A stray pebble blasted through the helm of an unlucky private, shattering through shields and glass. She fell to the ground lifelessly. "Open fire!"

Their adrenaline ran high, mass effect rounds from dozens of rifles smashed powerlessly against alien chitin. The heavy weapons specialists fired a series of rockets, their only hope of doing any serious damage. They burst on impact with the beast's hide. The beast screamed and for a moment it looked like they might be turning the tides. Then the smoke cleared, they hadn't even fractured its chitin.

It howled and climbed high into the air, where it descended. Right on top of their sergeant. "Morris!" Johnny cried too late, the man would not escape in time. It fell, swallowing him and the very ground he stood on.

The shaking lessened, Johnny got back to his feet. The surviving marines of the expedition were scattered and struggling to stand. "We're nothing but food for that worm..." someone mourned, sounding devoid of hope.

But he wasn't wrong. They couldn't fight that thing, not with their pea shooters. He wouldn't send a company of artillery at this thing without air support, and there was no chance they'd be seeing that on this backwater colony. They needed to evacuate, and fast! But how? Where could they go? Johnny tried to think. Look around, find anything you can use.

He scanned the surroundings, ignoring their worn M29 Grizzly with the gun that didn't work. Frontier forces weren't as well equipped as core worlds,. When the gun broke down two weeks ago there was no one qualified to fix it. They were still waiting for a TDY weapons mechanic to repair its main cannon. They were paying for that logistical failure now.

The grizzly was nothing but a massive target for the thresher. He needed something different. He viewed the landscape. There was a long river to the south and a rocky field to the east. Then there was-wait. He looked back to the rocky field in the distance, then the dirt at his feet. The ground here was soft. Maybe the maw couldn't follow them through the rocks. It could save them!

But he wasn't the only one with a plan. "Get back to the Grizzly! We're getting out of here!"

Johnny panicked, they'd be sitting ducks in that thing! "No! We're one giant target in that thing!"

"And out here we're just a bunch of smaller ones! This way we'll have some armor and speed! Everyone in!"

Marines began piling into the grizzly as the ground began to tremble. The maw burst out of the ground right next to their armored transport. It heaved and spewed thick ropes of acidic mucus over the vehicle before it could start up. It started smoking, the vehicle was _melting!_

The radio waves were filled with bloodcurdling screams. Marines crawled out of the Grizzly and writhed on the ground as the acid ate through their armor and flesh. The maw descended and swallowed them. Johnny heard their cries even as they reached the beast's stomach, they were still alive.

"Get to higher ground! The maw can't chase us through the rocks! Spread out and follow me!" He commanded. He wasn't sure, but he had to sound confident. He needed these people to follow him if anyone was going to get out alive.

He dashed across the valley and hoped that the survivors were following him. His vision narrowed until all he could see were the hills. Until they were obscured by the maw.

It towered over them all, death personified. But Johnny's focus was still on what lied beyond. "Keep moving! Go around, we do not stop!"

He sprinted around the beast's massive form and kept moving. More screams, he couldn't count how many. He chanted to himself, keep moving. Keep moving!

His eyes flared open and he jolted up in his bed. The air was cool and clean, and he felt so light. He wasn't wearing his armor. His head darted around, where was he?

Calloused hands grabbed his shoulders and kept him from struggling.. "Easy, son. Come back to me. You're safe now."

His breath hitched, he knew that voice. He focused on the person holding him in place. It was Commander Anderson.

"Sir? What's going on? Where am I?"

"The Akuze infirmary. You've been unconscious for a week."

"A week? Since..." The screams returned. Johnny hitched and covered his eyes. "No...how many others made it out?"

"Two, but they were in critical condition. The last one passed away two nights ago. You're the sole survivor, Shepard."

The sole survivor. His entire squad was gone. Friends he'd laughed with in the chow hall the very morning before their final patrol. All gone. Devoured by that alien. And he couldn't save a single one of them. His sister would have. Jane would have found away.

"Save your tears, son. This isn't the time."

Johnny shot a nasty glare at the commander, "Then when is, sir. Why not now?" What right did this man think he had to tell him when to mourn? What the hell did he know? "What are you even doing here? You're not stationed anywhere near this system."

Anderson nodded and stood. "Stand up, Shepard."

Johnny almost did, and felt a massive pain in his legs. "Ow, what the..."

"You tore several muscles sprinting to safety. I imagine it's quite painful."

"Then how am I supposed to stand?"

"The doctors don't want you to. I do. So stand." Anderson stared him down, "Or is that too much for you, corporal?"

A part of Johnny didn't want to indulge the Commander. He wanted to spite him and tell him to go back to whatever comfy corner of the galaxy he commanded. But the look in Anderson's eye showed that was exactly what he expected, and Johnny didn't want to give him that. He wanted to defy him. He wanted to prove he was more than that boy from the grave hiding in his sister's shadow.

He heaved his legs over the side of his bed, gritting his teeth as his muscles cried for him to stop. Nevertheless he persisted. His feet touched the cool tiled hospital floor. He breathed deep and pushed himself off the bed. His legs flared as if there were pieces of glass inside his flexing muscles, but he pressed through. His body rose until he met the commander eye to eye. He did not back down.

Anderson remained unreadable. His arm moved from behind his back and offered something to Johnny. It was a letter. The N7 logo was printed on the front, with his name below it.

"Open it." Anderson ordered.

Johnny took the letter, he was unwilling to let himself believe what he hoped. The shock hit him once he opened the letter and read the first line.

CORPORAL JOHN SHEPARD,

PER BUPERS ORDER 1417, YOU ARE HEREBY ORDERED TO REPORT TO SYSTEMS ALLIANCE INTERPLANETARY COMBATIVES ACADEMY AT VILA MILITAR, RIO DE JANEIRO.

The rest of the text were the details, including time frame and liability waivers. "This can't be..."

"I've sponsored you and submitted your application. Forgive my initiative."

"You said I wasn't N-school material. So why?" Johnny asked as the realization finally settled.

"I saw your suit footage. I lived the encounter through your eyes. You kept your head in a no-win situation and came out alive when everyone else was killed. That's the kind of fortitude the special forces demands. When I met you last year, I saw a marine who would ride out his contract and hang up his uniform. But you've grown. You were placed in a position to prove your merit in the field, and you did."

He leveled his gaze, "You wanted a chance. So I'm giving it to you. You have a seat in the oncoming class."

Shepard read over the letter again. It was just like the one Jane had received, only the names and dates were different. He'd spent so much time trying to find his own road, and to escape his sister's shadow. But here he was, being offered to travel the same road his sister never had the chance to. Could he take it?

"I don't know what to say..." Johnny said, consumed by thought.

Anderson nodded, "Think it over, you have time. Class commences in thirty days, and your doctor says you'll be released in twenty. Make your choice and never look back. But remember, the Academy only takes those who seize the initiative when it presents itself. There are no second chances."

"Sir...I don't deserve this." Johnny said.

"The applicant board, your CO and I say otherwise."

"But I wasn't even the best marine in that squad. There were plenty of great candidates who just weren't as lucky as me," Shepard said guiltily.

"But they're not here. You are." Anderson placed a comforting hand on his shoulder. Shepard looked up, Anderson's expression had shifted. He was lost in a sad memory of his own. "The worlds don't spin in perfect harmony. Sometimes the most promising flames are snuffed out before they can truly shine."

' _Like my sister,'_ Johnny remembered.

Anderson nodded and turned to leave. "Shine your brightest, Shepard, whatever you decide. That will be enough."

The door closed behind him, and Johnny felt utterly alone.

He thought about lying back in his bed, but his mind was too active to rest. He owed it to his fallen comrades to keep moving. He carried himself to the sink and washed his face. He noticed a thin scar climbing over his left temple. He lifted his scraggy hair and ran his finger along it. He couldn't remember when he got it, but he knew it would always remind him of Akuze and everyone he'd lost.

To be an N7...that had never been his dream. It wasn't even Jane's. Joining the military had been a way of getting her and her brother out of the gang. She kept finding reasons to stay and reenlist. First to pay for his college. Then the promotion offered enough money to live comfortably. And finally because he enlisted, and she wanted to keep her brother safe. Jane always believed that you should work to excel wherever you found yourself. So she did, and became the best damn marine she could be. Special forces school just seemed to be the next logical step once she was accepted. Most people spent half their lives dedicated to even the chance of being accepted. She just happened to be good at it.

He'd been the follower training behind in the safety of her shadow. Then she disappeared and he was left alone in the spotlight. Where could he go? He didn't have any direction. All he had was a degree and three years left on his enlistment. So he started the only way he could: he made himself the best he could with where he was and hoped he'd find a road forward later. He made every hour spent on the training field count, every practice round was a little closer to center than the last. And every off-duty hour was filled with self-improvement. He got his claws into every developmental opportunity the military provided. He'd shaped himself into an admirable soldier, and it was finally being recognized.

And now he had that road forward. The road that had belonged to his sister. If he took it, would he still be trailing after his big sister? Would he be trapping himself in her memory?

Maybe it didn't matter if he did. He would always wonder what could have been if his sister was still here. But she wasn't, so all he could do was choose for himself. His sister may have started on this road first, but she never walked it. Now it could be his. And on it, he could finally move past Jane. He would reach that point where her journey came to an untimely end, and cross it.

He wanted this, he realized. He would bear the memories of everyone he'd lost. He would carry all that weight and he would keep moving. He would make this road his own.

He grabbed a pair of clippers from the medicine cabinet and shaved Johnny's mat of scruffy dark brown hair. Tufts of the hair his sister had loved to tuffle fell lock by lock into the sink until nothing remained but a soft scruff on top. He ran his hand over, the stubble scraped against his palm. It felt like fresh cut grass from an overgrown field.

He looked in the mirror, the scar was displayed proudly.

Johnny-no. John would be ready for the Academy. He would throw all of his grit and determination into whatever reality the legends of the Academy were built on. John Shepard took his first steps down a road all his own.

Just like Jane would have wanted.

 **A/N**

I love how vague the mass effect 1 profile backgrounds are. They give you just enough to establish a baseline for your character, but not enough to make it clear-cut. There's room for us to create our own backstories and headcanons within the narrative, and that helps make our Shepards unique to us.

So I wanted to give my version for this story. I wanted to write about what motivates this Shepard to become something great. In game, Shepard's motivation is their own. But in a written narrative where Shepard has to be his own character, he can't be just a brick for the player to project onto. They have to be just as layered as the other characters, even moreso since they're one of the protagonists in this story.

So I hope you've enjoyed this series of backstory. I think I'll leave this for now and focus on the main plot. I might even delete this story later on, touch them up and throw these into the main story as an intermission between ME2 and 3 events. We'll see. So see you back at the main plot. And please review.


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